In traditional designs for switch and other networking systems, a heat source, such as a transceiver, and a heat sink, are joined to provide thermal conduction from the heat source to the heat sink. This is provided by allowing the metal surfaces of the heat source and the heat sink to contact each other for transfer of heat. However, it has been found that this type of contact is imperfect, as the contacting metal surfaces are typically not perfectly flat. Consequently, many portions of the metal surfaces may not be in contact. As a result, tiny gaps exist between the metal surfaces of the heat source and heat sink, and block heat transfer by conduction in these gaps. The existence of these tiny gaps decreases the heat transfer efficiency between the heat source and heat sink. At the same time, newer technologies have increased the heat output at the heat source—up to four times the heat output of previous heat sources. Therefore, there is an ever increasing need to efficiently transfer heat by conduction between the heat source and the heat sink.
In some proposed designs, a thermal pad is included between the heat source and heat sink, allowing more intimate contact with the metal surfaces of both the heat source and heat sink. Such a design aims to avoid the existence of the tiny gaps and increase the efficiency of thermal conduction. However, the efficiency of this design relies on maintaining the thermal pad intact. In some cases, this can be difficult. For example, if the heat source and heat sink are joined by relative sliding motion, there is a tendency for damage to the thermal pad during the sliding motion.
To solve the possibility of damage to the thermal pad, it is a purpose of this disclosure to provide a mechanism to prevent damage to a thermal pad when the heat source and a heat sink with a thermal pad between them are joined by a relative sliding motion.